Football commit No. 9: Pleasanton P/K Josh Ward

UPDATE: Though Ward will be given an opportunity to beat out walk-on Matthew Guevara at placekicker, Pleasanton coach Tab Dumont said Ward’s “No. 1 job” will be punting and kicking off.

“You don’t see many high school kids who can line up and kick it

through the end zone every time,” Dumont said. “That’s big. That

determines how many points you’re going to give up.

“His hang time is phenomenal (around 4.7 seconds). His (punts) aren’t hitting the ground and

rolling 40 yards. They’re going 40 yards in the air, with tremendous

hang time.”

Though neither of those skills are as sexy as 40-yard dash times or bench presses, they can be every bit as important when it comes to winning games.

It all boils down to what Smithson Valley H.S. coach Larry Hill calls “hidden yardage.” The concept is simple. The more field you make an opponent travel, by managing field position and limiting turnovers, the tougher it is to score.

As intuitive as that sounds, most fans would probably be as shocked as I was to read that only 1 in 30 drives — a measly 3.3% — that begin at or inside the 20 yield touchdowns.

As such, specialists like Ward who can regularly produce such circumstances — his father Jeff Ward said about 70% of his kickoffs go for touch backs — are unbelievably valuable. Which is why other schools will likely come calling.

Dumont said Texas A&M “loved” Ward, and likely would have offered him if it didn’t already have a commitment from Pennsylvania’s Taylor Bertolet. Dumont also said Baylor, LSU and Alabama were impressed with Ward.

ESPN gives him a 73 rating out of 100, and Kohl’s Professional Kicking Camps rates

him as the 42nd best PK and the 52nd best punter in the nation for the

Class of 2011.

But despite the other offers sure to come his way, Jeff Ward said his son has no plans to entertain any of them.

“He’s on cloud nine,” he said. “He’s a Roadrunner. The coaches already asked him if they were going to pick up the paper and see that he’d de-committed, and he said, “No, sir. You stood up and spoke for me, so I’m your man. I’m dedicated.”

A bit more reason to stick around — Josh’s mother Debbie (1989) and uncle Joe (1997) both graduated from UTSA.

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As per a tip received Tuesday afternoon, UTSA has added Pledge No. 9, from Pleasanton specialist Josh Ward.

Though he started on both sides of the football for the Eagles last season, it would appear that Ward will handle kicking duties for the Roadrunners. (Still waiting on a call from Pleasanton coach Tab Dumont to figure out what he’s been told about his role. We’ve been playing phone tag.)

An Express-News All-Area pick at kicker, where Ward (6-0, 210 pounds) converted 5 of 7 field goals, including two from 46 yards. He also made 19 of 22 PATs, and averaged 40 yards per punt.

A quick assessment: As you might expect, there isn’t much demand for Youtube highlights of kickers and punters. So we’ll have to rely on Eagles coach Tab Dumont, who describes Ward as “a true weapon” in the preseason dossiers area teams send in to the Express-News every year. He also wonders if Ward might be the best returning player in the San Antonio area.

Uh, ever hear of Malcolm Brown and Aaron Green, coach?

Teasing aside, it speaks volumes about what UTSA thinks of Ward in giving him a full scholarship. Even upper-tier schools are often loath to hand out full rides for special teams positions, preferring to fill them instead with walk-ons. That seems judicious until your team is lining up for a 48-yard field goal with a conference championship at stake.

Looking at it in practical terms, giving scholarships to kickers and/or punters is like insurance. It’s no fun cutting that check every month, but so very worth it when you need the coverage.